


Where we start

by Unallave



Category: Amar a Muerte
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-10
Updated: 2019-06-10
Packaged: 2020-04-07 23:37:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 8,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19095328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Unallave/pseuds/Unallave
Summary: A story of friendship, laughter, tears, and love.





	1. Ch1

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoy. Please leave feedback.

CH 1

It was early when her alarm went off. Still dark and still hot as it had been the past few nights. She was laying on top of her sheets when she looked over at her alarm. Her phone read 4:45 am and she had a text from her mother from the night before that she ignored. The window was open and she could hear the birds chirping outside. She left the window open the night before in hopes of bringing in a non existent breeze, but to no avail. Her fan spun slowly and loudly clunking along as if it could stop at any moment. She wasn’t one to linger in bed after her alarm went off. She had always been an early riser even when she was a kid, the same can be said for now at 24. She hopped out of bed yawned, stretched, and moved to her dresser. She had sweat on the small of her back and behind her knees. The reason she’s been getting up earlier is so she can run before the heat is unbearable. She puts on her running shorts and gets dressed finishing by pulling her hair into a high pony. She has taken to sleeping in just a T-shirt and underwear to try and stay cool. The summers in the City are always so hot. 

She runs the same route every morning and enjoys the serenity of the park and sights she passes along. Running brings her great joy and is her escape from the stresses of her life. She lets her mind wander thinking about everything and nothing at all. There aren’t many people out and about this early in the morning. Just the early risers heading to work and about their day. She stops to admire a fountain and splash some water on her face. A voice slurs out, “theress sno swimingss sins the fountainss.” She jumps back from the fountain trying to find the source of the voice. She sees a young woman in an outfit that clearly says she hasn’t been home from the evening before laying on the bench taking a swig from a silver flask. 

“I’m not swimming in the fountain, I’m just cooling off a bit. This heat is intolerable,” the startled girl responded to the clearly intoxicated one. She then asked, “are you ok? You seem like you could use some help.” It’s not that it was a dangerous area, but it was clear this young woman was in rough shape and maybe she could help her in some way. She didn’t know why she asked. She just felt something tell her it was the right thing to do.  
The young woman responded, “I am perfectly fine alone here.” And then proceeded to take another sip of alcohol. She looked the runner over and really looked at her for the first time. She was startled to see how beautiful she was and felt bad for her rudeness to her. “Perdon.” “Lo siento” she quickly said as the runner had been about to leave. “Valentina” she said as she stuck out her hand to the runner. “Juliana”. “Mucho gusto.” Juliana responded. 

Juliana was intrigued by the woman. She was clearly incredibly beautiful, had piercing blue eyes, long light brown hair, and fair skin. But she was perplexed why she was alone on a bench drinking at 5 in the morning. It wasn’t safe or smart. She wanted to help this girl find her way home. “What are you doing drinking on a bench in a park at this time?” she asked Valentina. Not waiting for a response, “I’m sorry that was rude too! How can I help you? Want to talk about it?” Valentina looked at her and responded, “my father died 2 months ago and I can’t seem to move on as everyone wants me to. i got in a huge fight with my now ex boyfriend. So it’s been a weird couple of hours, months.” Juliana instinctively held Valentina’s hand in hers and not sure what to say not wanting to linger on such sad thoughts she asked her, “I love your clothes, what designer are they?” Valentina at first seemed confused then pleased by the pleasant distraction. The girls talked for a few minutes about her clothes until Juliana’s phone beeped reminder her it was almost time to get ready for work. She looked back to Valentina who was staring into her eyes as if she was looking into her. Juliana paused and then regrettably said, “ I have to go. Work.” She asked Valentina if she had a way to get home she didn’t want her sitting in the park alone any longer. Valentina called her driver and Juliana offered to wait with her until he arrived. They sat on the bench talking and getting lost in the conversation. Valentina’s driver finally arrived and she got up to leave stumbling as she did. Juliana reaches out and caught her arm and waist as she almost went down. “Alcohol and high heels aren’t the best mix,” Juliana laughed out to Valentina. Valentina laughed as well and couldn’t help it when her eyes lingered a bit too long on Juliana. Her hand on her waist as support lingered for what felt like an eternity. It felt nice to have this stranger looking out for her. She knew Juliana was a kind person. She was always a good judge of character she thought to herself. Valentina the. Proceeded to break the contact and was helped into the car by her driver. She rolled down the window and said, “it was nice to meet you Juliana and thank-you.” Juliana waved, flashed a smile and continued her run home. 

Who was that girl. The entire run home her face flashed in her mind. Her eyes especially. They were so unique and held her attention. She didn’t know what it was but she hoped she would run into her again soon.


	2. CH 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> CH2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading. New to this.

Juliana wasn’t one to be late to work but her encounter from the morning left her behind schedule. She rushed her shower this morning and dressed quickly. She was approximately 20 minutes late and had to run the 8 blocks because on top of being late she missed her morning bus. She got to the bakery out of breath and sweating profusely. She thought to herself that today was going to be a long one. 

She needed this job though and it wasn’t exactly what she wanted to be doing but she needed the income. Her boss was an older woman named Amira who owned the bakery and ran it with her grandson Luca. Luca was kind and hardworking. He woke up before everyone and got the bakery going each morning. It was Juliana’s job to serve the customers and help out in the back with anything that Amira or Luca needed. She enjoyed their company and with tips it was enough to pay her rent and that was what counted. She was taking night classes at the local university learning graphic design. She had some savings leftover from when her grandmother passed that she was putting towards the classes, it was her promise to her grandmother that she wouldn’t waste the money. 

That morning she began as usual putting on her apron, sweeping around the small tables, and putting out the fresh baked goods so they were on display. She then walked to the front sidewalk to write up the daily specials and to turn the “open” sign on. As she was scribbling out, “lemon tarts” and drawing a lemon tree next to it she heard a familiar voice. It said to her, “I didn’t expect to see you again so soon!” Valentina was standing on the sidewalk in business clothes staring at her smiling. 

It had been 2 hours since their encounter and she was sure the woman must still be drunk.. or at least very hungover. She returned the smile and jokingly asked, “how’s your head?” She saw Valentina’s smile grow into a laugh and she didn’t know why but Juliana liked making her laugh. Valentina informed her, “My head is killing me, I took two pills have been drinking water, but what I really need right now is some coffee and something to eat. I have a meeting with my family’s attorney in 30 minutes down the street from here.” Valentina noticed the sign Juliana had been drawing on and gushed, “did you draw that??” Juliana blushed and nodded. Valentina said, “you seem to have a talent for doodles, I wonder what else you’re good at?” Again Juliana blushed and Valentina realizing what she said and how it sounded fidgeted with her hands and quickly asked, “so are you open yet, I’d love to get some coffee and breakfast before my meeting.” She didn’t want the encounter to end but Valentina really couldn’t miss this meeting. They were to review her father’s will. 

Juliana was surprised to see Valentina again so soon. Glad was a more accurate emotion to describe how she was feeling. She didn’t know why but she wanted to know her more. She knew they were from different backgrounds and Valentina clearly had money, but something about her drew her in. Maybe her eyes? Who knows she thought to herself. She went behind the counter and got Valentina a coffee and some fresh baked goods and waved Valentina’s money away, “it’s on the house,” Juliana offered. Valentina smiled and Juliana had a moment of courage, she quickly wrote her number on the back of one of the bakeries business cards and slipped it in the bag of baked goods while Valentina was putting her wallet away and dressing her coffee. She immediately feels her stomach drop and regret and doubt fill her mind. 

Why would this beautiful girl want to know me she thinks. She remembers the conversation from that morning by the fountain and how Valentina recently lost her father and broke up with her boyfriend the night before. “If you ever want to talk about your breakup or your dad or anything or whatever” she sputtered out glancing up at Valentina then back at her hands trying to pretend she didn’t just say that and sound like a complete fool. Valentina smiled and said, “thank you, well now I know where to find you again!” She left with a wave and one last look over her shoulder. Valentina was grateful for the kindness from Juliana and planned on taking her up on her offer.


	3. CH3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> CH3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you’re enjoying! Feedback is always welcome.

Valentina left the bakery feeling better than she had in days. In fact she couldn’t remember the last time she smiled like that. She certainly hadn’t with her ex in a long time. She wasn’t sure what she was feeling, but she knew that she wanted to get to know Juliana more and now she knew where she worked. She felt happy for another second until she remembered where she was going. Her brother stood outside the office waiting for her. Guille was happy to see her and brought her in for a hug. He had been on vacation with his girlfriend Renata and returned for the sole purpose of the will reading. Valentina leaned into the hug and let herself be hugged. She needed a human touch, she thought to herself, she’s been alone. So alone for so long now. She missed her father and the sense of belonging he brought into her life. Now she felt as if she didnt know what she wanted or how to proceed with life.

Eva her sister was waiting inside for them, with her step mother Lucia. Lucia smiled at Valentina and Guille and hugged them both. Eva sat down stern looking masking her emotions. She was reserved and kept to herself. The lawyer spent the next 2 hours reviewing all the contents of the will and going over every detail with them. Valentina was having a hard time paying attention when her stomach began to rumble. She remembered the baked goods Juliana had given her and got excited. She opened the bag grateful for the food and saw the business card in the bottom of the bag. She assumed they were in every bag, however when she turned it over she saw a handwritten number and a smile drawn on it. She smiled to herself and tucked the card into her coat pocket. She then had a hard time focusing on the meeting and the painstakingly boring details of what parts of her father’s company would be run by who. She was more focused on what she would say to Juliana. Juliana Juliana Juliana. She could see her in her mind as clear as day, dark brown hair, shorter and serious looking, but with beautiful deep brown eyes that drew you in. Valentina didn’t know what was going on with her, she attributed it to lack of sleep and being hungover. But she couldn’t help thinking about Juliana. 

The meeting ended and Valentina typed into her phone “Hey! the lemon tarts and coffee were a life saver.” SEND. She wasn’t sure if that would be enough for Juliana to know who it was, I mean it was possible that other people had lemon tarts and coffee that day, so she sent another message “thank you for rescuing me by the fountain this morning :) “ SEND. Valentina patiently waited looking at her screen hoping for an immediate response. Her brother’s voice brought her out of her own world. “Vale I have to head out, are you going to be ok?” She loved her brother and how much he worried about her. She felt like he was one of the only people she could talk to after their dad died. He was quiet but he listened and always knew what to say to her. “I’ll be ok,” she responded. He looked at her one last time before hugging her and parting. Eva had stayed back because she had more business with the lawyer that didn't require Valentina’s presence. Valentina was glad to be able to head home, she needed sleep badly. She got into the door her driver had been holding open and looked at her phone again and still no response. She knew that Juliana was probably still at work, but she was excited to get a response. She put her phone away and let her eyes close as she headed home. 

________________________________________________

Juliana was finishing her shift and saying goodbye to Luca and Amira feeling tired but content with the day so far. She had been pleasantly surprised to see Valentina this morning and work had passed quickly especially since she caught herself daydreaming through most of it. As she was walking home she looked at her phone finally and saw 3 messages. 1 from her mom from the night before that she was putting off responding to, and the other 2 were from an unknown number. She read them and smiled immediately entering Valentina into her contacts. She smiled to herself as she typed out, “you’re welcome, for both :)” SEND and “I hope your meeting this morning wasn’t too stressful.” SEND. She waited for the three little dots to tell her there was a response coming, but after a few moments waiting she tucked her phone away into her pocket and continued to walk home. 

She had a couple hours until her class started and she needed another shower desperately. Juliana stripped out of her baking clothes that had a lingering smell of flour and coffee on them mixed with her sweat. She entered her small shower but first pausing in front of the mirror she had been running now for almost a year since she got to the City and her body had changed. She hardly recognized herself in the mirror, especially since she rarely looked. She showered thinking about her day and smiled as she thought of the girl she met in the park. She thought of her eyes and smile. She didn’t know what this was, she never thought of anyone like this before. She let her mind wander as she showered. Juliana finally feeling clean dressed and sat on her couch with her pencils and sketch pad. She was drawing her fountain when her phone buzzed. “It was only a little stressful,” is what the message from Valentina read. 

“If you want to hangout and talk about it, I’ve been told I am a good listener,” Juliana typed out. She rubbed her hands on her knees she was nervous. The response came immediately, “I am going away for work, but should be back late next week. Want to meet for a drink?” Juliana wasn’t a big drinker but didn’t want to not see her so she responded with, “Yes, I’d love to, text me the details.”


	4. CH 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> CH4

Valentina was glad to be getting away for work for a bit, she needed to get away from everything and diving into work was a perfect way to do it. The meeting with the lawyer had made everything seem so final, like her father was truly gone and never coming back. She thought about how she was left enough that she could disappear and start a new life and live happily else where. However, she loved her family and truly loved her job. She didn’t want to run away. She wanted to not be so sad all the time. This work trip couldn’t have come at a better time. She was heading to Milan to cover the fashion show for a week. She loved interacting with all the designers, models, and photographers. She mostly loved learning everyone’s story and what made each person unique. She had always been a people person. She tends to draw people to her. Valentina stepped onto the plane and departed for what would be a busy week of work. 

Meanwhile in the City, Juliana continued her normal routine. Wake, run, shower, work, shower, study, class, sleep and so on. A few days passed and she hadn’t heard from Valentina, which she didn't expect to since she knew she was traveling for work. It was Saturday night and she expected Valentina to be back on Wednesday of next week. They had plans to meet on Friday night at a bar Juliana had never been to before. Juliana didn’t have many friends in this new city she was living in. She had only been there for about a year and most of her time she was working and studying. She texted Luca her co-worker who mentioned he and some of his friends were going to a bar that night. She didn’t want to sit at home again alone. She wanted to get out and break her normal routine of Netflix and whatever baked good she brought home that day.

Luca texted back “Come! Join us!”

Juliana smiled “ok see you soon!”

Juliana wore skinny jeans and a tank with a leather jacket, the heat wave had broke and it was windy and cool that night. She wore her hair up in a loose bun on her head and applied some mascara and tinted lip balm. She was never one to wear a ton of make-up, but she wanted to feel good about herself tonight. She was never super confident in the way she looked even though her mother told her frequently how beautiful she was. Part of her never trusted it because doesn’t every mother tell their child how beautiful they are? She gave herself one last look in the mirror and was about to step out her door when her phone buzzed. 

“Hi” —Valentina 

“Hi!”—Juliana 

“I was just thinking about you and wondering what you’re up to tonight?”— Valentina 

Juliana’s stomach jumped a little when she read that Valentina had been thinking about her. She walked back in and sat on the couch and typed out her response...

“I am meeting a friend from work and his friends at a bar in a little.” —Juliana 

“Oh ok. Have fun! Don’t let me keep you.”—Valentina 

Juliana didn’t want the conversation to end, but had already told Luca she would see him soon. 

“Thank you, I hope your work trip is going well and I’m excited for our hang-out on Friday :)”—Juliana. 

She was genuinely excited to see Valentina and get to know her more. Juliana then left to meet Luca at the bar across town. She had never been there before on account she didn't drink much but she knew of it. It had a reputation for getting a little rough on Saturday nights. Juliana wasn’t worried because she was with Luca who she knew well and trusted. At the bar, Luca ordered the group shots of tequila and Juliana by the third round was feeling it. She didn’t want to have anymore because she wanted to be able to make it home ok tonight. She was always thinking. Always in her head—she could never just let go. 

Luca held his hand out to her “let’s dance”

Juliana hesitated but grabbed it, she loved dancing. And she was good at it. She took off her coat and they went out to the dance floor. She moved her hips to the rhythm and felt amazing. She held onto Luca and they moved together. She could feel him move closer to her and she pulled away slightly, she wasn’t interested in Luca as anything more than a friend and didn't want to give him any signals that indicated otherwise. They danced for two or three songs then when a slow one came on broke apart and went back to the bar. A young man who was clearly intoxicated came up to Juliana and asked her to dance. She politely declined and turned her back to him. He then grabbed her arm roughly and pulled her around into him. His breath was pure alcohol and his eyes were blood shot. Juliana was scared she couldn’t get out of his grasp. Next thing she knew Luca was there he pushed the man away who stumbled back and fell backwards. The bar tender yelled and the bouncer grabbed the blatantly drunk man and threw him from the bar. Juliana was scared and her heart was racing. She wanted to go home, but was afraid the drunk man would be waiting outside. She asked Luca to walk her home. 

Luca was polite and agreed. They walked the entire way in silence and Juliana thanked Luca at her doorstep.

“I’ll see you at work. Thanks for tonight.” —Juliana

“I’m sorry about that man. I’ll see you later Juliana” —Luca 

“goodnight.”—Juliana 

Juliana turned and went inside. She felt dirty and scared and didn’t want to be alone. She pulled her phone out to call her mom and saw she had 5 text messages from Valentina. It seemed Valentina had drunkenly texted her from an after party. Juliana took the bait and texted back, hoping that Valentina would be able to respond because she wasn’t tired and she really needed someone to talk to. She felt like Valentina would be able to help her. 

“Hi. Are you there? I could really use someone to talk to.”—Juliana 

...

She was typing, Juliana held her breath and let it out when the message arrived.


	5. CH5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> CH5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, feedback is much appreciated.

“Hey I am here what’s going on?” Juliana read it probably five times before she could come up with a response. She didn’t want to worry the girl a world away but she wanted a friend to talk to sincerely. 

She decided on, “I had a rough night and could use a distraction. You seemed to be up to some fun, wanna tell me about it?”

Valentina was clearly drunk as her next message came through “Juli can I call you Juli you have very very brown eyes. Brown like the coffee you gave me the other day.” Juliana laughed at it, and decided to go with it.

“Well Vale, can I call you Vale? You have eyes that are blue like the sky.” Juliana was feeling better already.

It was midnight in her city and Juliana quickly counted that is must be 8 am in Milan. She was wondering how Valentina was drunk at 7 am and was worried for her. 

“yes you can call me Vale! I like that.”

“Did you stay up all night?” Juliana asked.

“Yes. I went to the after party which lead to a private party and then lead to another thing. Then next thing I know its so early. I am just getting to my hotel now.”

Juliana didn't know how she did it. “Going to get some rest finally then?” 

“After I shower, I hate getting into a clean bed smelling of alcohol.” Juliana agreed and thought about showering before she headed to bed as well.

“You know I could use a shower as well, I smell like a mixture of smoke and tequila.” Juliana responded. 

“We are showering at the same time :)” Juliana read it and laughed and blushed slightly. Why was she blushing when thinking about her new friend showering at the same time as her. She didn’t linger on the thought too long. She was happy to continue the conversation. 

They pleasantly texted back and forth for the next few minutes talking about nothing at all really, but Juliana was feeling better. It was late and she could barely keep her eyes open. She needed to shower and get to bed. The next morning she woke up to her alarm beeping. Uncharacteristically she turned it off, rolled over, and went back to bed. It was Sunday and she had off from work. She needed the extra sleep.

The rest of the week passed in haze and included texts back and forth with Valentina. She felt like they were becoming friends already and she was eager to see her in person again. She learned that Valentina got into journalism because of her father’s business. She also learned that Valentina liked to swim and loved going to the beach. She quickly picked up on how intelligent Valentina was and she thought to herself that her clothes and money masked this on her first impression of the young woman. 

Juliana went to see her mother on Thursday. She had been putting the visit off. Her relationship with her mother was strained ever since they arrived in the City. Juliana felt like she needed space from the woman who had been by her side her whole life. She needed to figure out her own path and who she was. Her mother wanted her to continue to work alongside her in the restaurant and Juliana didn’t want to get caught up in that life forever. She wanted to get into graphic design and needed to establish some autonomy.

She didn’t take it well when Juliana told her she was moving out. Juliana was disappointed, she felt she deserved the opportunity to make her own way. Juliana’s mother honestly thought it was because she had a boyfriend and Juliana had to stress that this wasn’t the case. Juliana had never had a boyfriend. In middle school and high school her friends dated boys and went to parties, but she helped her mom work and honestly had no interest in it. She assumed she would just meet someone when she was older. Now at 24 she doubted she would ever meet someone. She wasn’t exactly trying to and wanted to focus on school. To her that was enough right now. She had her whole life in front of her. Her mother pressured her though constantly asking, “when are you going to get married? When am I going to have grandkids?” Or “I don't want to be an old grandmother.” Juliana always brushed those comments off thinking it’ll happen when it happens. But it was another reason for her moving out and getting a place of her own. Juliana loved her mother and just hoped in the future things would be ok between the two of them. 

On Friday morning Juliana woke up with a spring in her step. She was excited to spend time with her new friend that evening and was going to have to keep herself distracted at work until then. By the time she got to work she was glad to have work that day, she wouldn’t know what to do with her mind if she didnt. She was very excited to see her friend. She got a text from Valentina halfway through her shift with the address of the restaurant. Time seemed to be moving so slowly. It really didnt help that there weren’t any customers. She had already swept the floor twice. She wasn’t sure what else she could do. When there was 30 minutes left in her shift Luca appeared from the back and let her go early. 

She rushed home to shower and get ready. She wasn’t sure what to wear she safely went with the romper and boots that she loved. The romper hugged her hips nicely and showed off her legs despite her lack of height. She wasn’t super short, she was 5’5” but Valentina was easily 5’9”. The top of the romper was strapless sweetheart neck and she topped off the outfit with her favorite leather jacket. Juliana did her makeup and tied her hair into a braid and pony. She put in a little more effort to how she looked than when she went out with Luca and his friends. She wanted to look nice. She didn’t question why she was going to all the effort for a friend, it just felt right. 

(Breaking the 4th wall for a second—narrator here, hello! How could she not realize she was into Valentina yet, am I right? Ok ok where were we.....)

Juliana headed out excited for the night. Juliana was first to arrive and waited outside nervously pacing. A large black SUV pulled up and her heart jumped a bit as the driver helped Valentina out of the back seat. Valentina looked wow. Juliana couldn’t help but stare. She looked better than she remembered her. Valentina smiled when she saw Juliana and kissed each cheek. 

“Sorry I got used to the double kiss, that’s what I’ve been doing all week in Milan.”

Juliana wasn’t bothered and gave her friend a hug her arm just above her waist as that was how they matched up. “I am glad you’re back it’s good to see you in person again finally. It feels like it’s been forever.”

“It does? doesn't it?” Valentina responded breaking the hug and moving to go into the restaurant. 

Juliana missed the hug after it ended and followed her friend inside. She was smiling and felt truly happy.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goal is to add a little each day and see what happens.

Dinner went smoothly. They laughed, they joked, and conversation was never awkward. It was a relaxed evening between friends. Neither of them wanted the night to end as they left the restaurant. They had been enjoying one another’s company. Valentina enjoyed that she could relax around Juliana, she didn’t have to put on a show like she did around her other friends. She could just be herself. Juliana liked that Valentina felt like the only person she could open up to, she is such a reserved and private person it felt good to have someone to let in. 

Juliana was showing Valentina pictures of her designs on her phone when Valentina took her phone and was scrolling through the pictures. Juliana was feeling overwhelmed that someone was so interested in her and her work. She excused herself to go to the bathroom to catch her breath for a second. It just felt like a lot, and not in a bad way just in a new way. She struggled to even think coherent thoughts about her emotions. Emotional communication wasn’t her strong point. She liked to show her emotions through art or action.

When she returned to the table Valentina asked her if everything was ok. Juliana said yes and reassured Vale’s worried look that everything was fine. The rest of the dinner passed by just as the beginning had. It was pleasant and exciting to be around Valentina. Juliana was drawn in by the young woman. She couldn’t peel her eyes away from the warm blue eyes across from her. She was taking in everything she was saying and how her eyes smiled when she laughed. God. How she liked to make her laugh.

The evening did come to an end and Juliana and Valentina parted ways with a kiss on the cheek. It was the only awkward moment of the whole night. Neither of the two was sure how to say goodbye. Juliana moved in for a hug and Valentina bounced a little and went in for a kiss on the cheek. Both girls laughed and Valentina held Juliana tight in a hug. She then pulled apart from the embrace and kissed each of Juliana’s cheeks. The second kiss Juliana thought lingered for what felt like an eternity. It wasn’t much longer than the first cheek but enough for Juliana to notice a difference. She blushed when they pulled apart and said goodnight to Valentina. 

At her apartment Juliana fell back onto her bed. She was happy and didn’t really want to acknowledge the things she were feeling. It was easier for her to be in the moment. Her phone buzzed and she smiled at the name that was on her screen “Vale with the pretty blue eyes:)”. Valentina must have changed how it was entered when she went to the bathroom. She was in her phone as “Valentina” before. 

“Hey are you still awake?” 

Juliana responded “of course” and “what’s up”

“I had a really great time at dinner with you tonight.”

Juliana was smiling and pleased by Valentina’s message. She was glad to have her as a friend. 

“Vale when are we hanging out again??”

“Tomorrow?”

Juliana had work tomorrow, however the plus side of working in a bakery on the weekend was that she was always done work by the afternoon. 

“I have work until 1pm but then I’m all yours :)” Juliana responded. 

The conversation went on for hours. Each asking questions to get to know each other more and more. Juliana asked Valentina, “if you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?” And Valentina asked Juliana, “if you could have a super power what would it be?” Back and forth they texted. It was close to 1 am when Juliana was a mixture of tired and brave when she asked Valentina, “have you ever been in love?” 

She waited for a response. She saw the three dots and knew Valentina was typing. 

“No. I haven’t and I don't know if I believe in that 100%. Have you?”

“No. And don’t laugh I’m going to tell you something personal so you have to promise not to laugh Vale ok?”

“I promise, cross my heart I won’t laugh.”

Juliana sighed as she typed out, “I haven’t been with anyone before.” 

What felt like a whole minute passed before Valentina’s response came through. “That’s ok, it’s not all that it’s cut out to be. I’ve never had the fireworks or great experience they sell it as on tv and in movies.”

Juliana didn't know what to say back to her friend. She felt sad for her and sad at the fact that she’s never been in love. She then quickly remembered neither has she. 

“Well you’re not alone!” Juliana playfully responded to Valentina. 

“Let’s go swimming tomorrow Juli” 

“Again don't laugh!! Butttt I don’t exactly know how to swim...”

“No way? You have to come over. I’ll send my driver. We have a pool and I’ll teach you.”

Juliana was nervous and excited. She replied, “Can I trust you to not let me drown ;)?” 

“I wouldn’t ever..your my Juli.. how could I let anything bad happen to you?”

Juliana’s heart fluttered at being called her Juli. She liked the way that sounded. 

“Your Juli huh?” Juliana pushed back in a playful manor. She wanted to see what Valentina would say back now more than ever. 

Valentina didn’t disappoint, “yes all mine ♥️” Juliana knew deep down that this was something new for her, she couldn’t put a name to it yet. She had never felt the things she was feeling for anyone before. She didn’t know what to say back. She wanted to convey the feelings she was having, without maybe going to far or scaring off Valentina. She settled with, “good :) that’s what I hoped you’d say.”

They talked a bit more and eventually Juliana drifted to sleep pleased in how her evening went.


	7. Chapter 7 Realization

Juliana woke up and was immediately sweating again, she could feel beads of sweat dripping down her back. Another heat wave in a hot city, in an apartment without air conditioning. She rolled over it was too early and she had another hour or so before work. 

A few minutes passed and she was too hot to fall back asleep. She got up and got a cool cloth to lay across her head, her mother would do this for her when she was a young girl. It wasn’t helping, she just tossed and turned. On her next attempt to cool off and go back to sleep she took off her shirt and looked up at the dark ceiling now topless. It was too hot for clothes she stayed like that for a few more minutes. She wasn’t going back to sleep, sleep was evasive and wasn’t happening. She decided to take a cool shower before work, as it was too hot to run and she had to be in to work early today to help with the weekend baking. They were always so busy on the weekends. 

She walked by the mirror on the way to the bathroom and caught a glimpse of herself. She had never been overly confident in her appearance, but standing in front of the mirror in just her underwear she felt a new sense of self appreciation. She had been working hard with school, the bakery, and running and her appearance was a physical manifestation of that. Her breasts were round and perky and she had a flat stomach. Juliana turned to the side and continued towards the shower. She laughed to herself as she thought about the night she had with Valentina. Her thoughts mostly lingered on the texting conversation that they had. She was her Juli. It felt good. It felt right. 

In the shower she thought about the hug they had when Valentina arrived and she thought about the double kiss upon the departure. She thought about how that second kiss lingered and she liked it. What did that mean? They were good friends right? Juliana immediately knew that didn't feel right when she thought it. She didn't want to be just good friends with Valentina. She wanted more. That scared her. Was she interested in a woman? She thought about Valentina’s eyes as she caressed her breast. She touched her nipple and it became hard immediately. What was happening to her. She’s never been interested in women...or men.. now that she really thought about it. She touched her other nipple and it became hard too. She liked the way it felt. She liked thinking about Valentina while touching herself. She sighed and said out loud “oh Juli what have you gotten yourself into.” She turned to face the stream of water on her face and tried to will her feelings away. She knew what they were now. It was as if something just clicked in her. Oh no. She let the water stream in her closed eyes and over her lips. Her mouth slightly open she drank in some of the cool water. She closed her eyes and let her hand drift down her body to her thigh. Her other hand still on her nipple, pinching more now and rolling it in her fingers. She felt her short hairs in her other hand and finally touched herself. She was wet and it felt good to be touching herself there while thinking about Valentina. She wanted Valentina to touch her. She wanted Valentina’s hands on her. She moved her hand in circles around her clit all the while picturing Valentina, her smile, her eyes, her body in the clothes she had on last night. Juliana sped up her hands and moved quicker with harder pressure. She leaned against the wall of the shower and used her other hand to now keep her upright. She was so close. She held her eyes tight and imagined leaning in to Valentina and kissing Valentina. And she finally orgasmed upon that thought.

Juliana slid down the shower wall and sat down and began to cry. She was scared of the things she was feeling. A little ashamed to be thinking the thoughts she just did about a woman. Was she gay? If she was what would her mother say. She would never speak to her again. What would Valentina say. She probably wouldn’t want to be friends anymore Juliana thought. But Juliana wanted to be more than friends, but she didn’t want to scare Valentina away she cherished what they had too much. She let herself sit there and let all the thoughts roll around in her mind again and again. She sat in the cold water for a while crying until she heard the sound of her alarm from the other room alerting her that it was time to wake up and get ready for work.


	8. Swimming

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay. Recap: they had gone to dinner had a great time. The next morning Juliana realized her feelings for Valentina. She felt ashamed of the way she felt. They had plans that day to meet up and go swimming...

It was almost 12:30 and Juliana had 30 more minutes until her shift ended. She had done all the tedious tasks on her normal list of things to do. She was just watching the clock move at glacial speed. She wanted to get out of there to see Valentina. She didn’t linger on her shower mishap of the morning. She didn’t want to get caught in her thoughts and have it change how she acted.

When she finally had gotten up out of the shower earlier that morning she decided she was just going to move on from the feelings and try to ignore them. She didn’t want anything to jeopardize her friendship with Valentina. So she picked herself up got dressed and headed for work. Thinking back on her decision she realized as she was looking at the clock it would not be an easy one to follow through on. 

At 12:59 a large black SUV pulled up out front of the bakery. Juliana bid her coworkers farewell and almost skipped out the door. The driver held the door open for her, she recognized him from before. Juliana got in the car and left a white cloudy stain on the seat. She realized she was covered in flour and was getting it all over the back seat of the car. She felt embarrassed to be in such a luxury vehicle being driven by a driver and now making a mess. She immediately apologized to the driver and hid her face in her hands. He wasn’t angry and politely told her to not worry about it. 

Juliana sat the rest of the ride in silence. She was noticing the houses getting bigger and more spread out the longer she was in the car. Until finally they pulled up to a gated entrance with a guard shack. She tried to peer over the fence and see the house that was behind it, but it was well hidden. She knew Valentina had money, but comeee on. The car pulled down a driveway lined with trees and finally after what felt like forever came to stop in front of a large modern looking house. Juliana thought to herself this was the biggest house she’s ever seen that wasn’t on TV. She was so surprised by the house she failed to notice the driver opening the door for her. She apologized again for the flour on the seats and got out of the car. The front door started to open and Valentina walked to her with a smile on her face. 

Valentina looked different than Juliana had ever seen her. She was in joggers and had her hair pulled up in a messy pony tail. She also had on a faded college logo T-shirt. She wasn’t wearing shoes and she looked completely relaxed. Her appearance was the opposite of how Juliana was feeling. Juliana was stressed. She was stressed about her feelings and she was stressed about the mess she made in the car because she hadn’t thought to bring a change of clothes. Juliana immediately started apologizing for getting flour on the seats of the car and blabbering on how she was incredibly embarrassed by it. Valentina told her not to worry and that she’s made bigger messes herself. She soothed Juliana with a simple smile and then a hug. Relief and a sense of calmness washed over Juliana. 

“Come on, I’ll give you a tour,” Valentina said as she pulled Juliana by the hand into the house. 

The tour ended with the women entering Valentina’s room. Juliana loved the way it looked. She loved the book shelves full of books. There was photographs everywhere and plants lining the windowsill. It seemed like a very nice place to hideout and recharge in. Juliana complimented Valentina on one of the professional photos hanging on the wall.

“I actually took that one myself” Valentina said in a casual way. She then. turned and walked to a dresser in the corner of the room and pulled out a bathing suit. 

“I wasn’t sure if you needed to borrow a swim suit?” She asked Juliana.

“Ah yes I came from work and completely forgot to bring clothes or a bathing suit. I don’t even know how that happened, I’m usually much more prepared.”

“Dont even worry about it.” Valentina responded with a wave of her hand. She then added “you can change in the bathroom its right through this door.”

Both changed into their bathing suits and proceeded to talk about their days through the door as they did so. Valentina was asking her if she got to bake anything good that morning, when Juliana opened the door and Valentina didn’t finish her question. She was interrupted by staring at Juliana.

Juliana looked at Val quizzically and asked, “hey Vale everything ok? You were asking me something about baking?”

Valentina replied, “Yes sorry, that bathing suit fits you nicely. Looks way better on you than it does on me! And yes I was asking you if you baked anything good this morning?”

Juliana’s thoughts were going a million miles a minute. She was staring at Valentina, no she was trying not to stare at Valentina in her bathing suit. She was thinking about how good Valentina looked. She was thinking about how the v on the front of the suit was cut low enough for her to see... no she stopped her thoughts she wasn’t checking out Valentina’s breasts. She was answering her question about baking. Juliana replied with no hesitation that she got to help make croissants. 

They talked some more about baking and Juliana’s school studies as they walked to the pool. Juliana was nervous she didn’t know how to swim and she didn’t want to embarrass herself. She wasn’t used to not being good at things. Valentina clicked a remote that was by the pool and a waterfall turned on. She clocked another button and music started playing softly in the background. The pool was beautiful, there were chairs and umbrellas all along the edge of it and in one corner a fire pit with chairs circled around it. Juliana asked herself, “did I die and go to heaven?” She laughed out loud at her own internal dialogue and Valentina looked at her with a smile. 

“What’s so funny?” Valentina asked her.

“Nothing! It’s just this is all amazing. The pool, the house, your room, the fire pit. All of it.” She then bent her head a bit and broke off eye contact and said, “I don’t really have things like this in my life.” 

“Well now you do! And you can use them as much as you want or need.” Valentina replied. She didn’t care that Juliana didn’t have money. She also never rubbed her money in Juliana’s face. She was just happy to share what she had with Juliana. 

“Ok time to learn to swim my girl.” Valentina said to Juliana. She then walked down the steps into the shallow end of the pool. When she was in water up to her waist she motioned for Juliana to follow. Juliana walked over to the steps and dipped her toes in the pool. It was heated of course and was a perfect temperature. She stepped on the first step and looked at Vale and said, “look I’m doing it!” 

Both laughed. Valentina waded over to Juliana and held out her hand to her. Juliana’s stomach did a back flip as she grabbed her hand and walked into the pool. Once they were both standing in waist deep water Valentina looked at Juliana and said in a serious tone, “I’m not going to make you do anything you don't want to do, and I will make sure nothing bad happens ok?” Juliana gulped and nodded. She was nervous on different levels. Nervous about learning to swim and nervous about the woman staring into her eyes in front of her. 

Valentina told Juliana she was going to teach her to float first. She showed her what she wanted her to do and then asked, “now lay back, and I will hold under you so you can get the feel of it.” Juliana slowly moved herself closer to the water. She was nervous and Valentina could see it. “Hey relax, I won’t let go.” She reassured Juliana. Juliana let herself go into Valentina’s outstretched arms in the water. She could feel every part of the contact. She could feel Valentina’s right arm holding her on her upper back and her hand pushing into her arm. She could feel her left arm supporting on her lower back right above the waistband of her bathing suit. Her fingers into her hip. Juliana breathed in and out deeply. Her eyes had been closed and she just opened them to see Valentina staring at her. They locked eyes and Valentina smiled at her. A smile that went from the corners of her mouth all the way to her eyes. Juliana’s stomach flipped again. She wanted to float in the water in Valentina’s arms forever. 

“Juli you’re doing it! I’m going to move my arm ok just keep doing what you’re doing” 

“Don’t let go!”

“It’s ok you’re going to be ok..” Valentina soothed Juliana. 

She moved her upper arm from behind Juliana’s back and Juliana immediately missed the contact. Valentina then slowly moved her other arm and Juliana floated.

Valentina stood proud next to her watching. Juliana held her eyes shut floating in the moment. She wanted to remember it forever. She thought to herself she could do this, she could be friends with Valentina. She didn’t need more. If it meant never seeing her again she would rather be friends than lose Valentina. 

“Earth to Juli!!!” “What’s going on in that brain of yours??” Valentina asked with a laugh.

Juliana interrupted from her thoughts of Valentina broke her floating and stood up in the pool and laughed as she splashed water towards Valentina. 

“I did it!! I floated!” Juliana exclaimed. 

Valentina moved closer to her grabbed her in a hug and then next thing she knew she was thrown under water still enveloped in the hug. When both of the young women emerged from the water laughing Juliana said to Valentina, “you better watch out payback for that is coming!”

Valentina smirked and replied, “I can’t wait. Bring it on Juli..Do your best!”

Valentina’s phone rang in the distance.

“Ugh I need to get that, I am expecting a call from an editor of a magazine, they were supposed to call this morning but they never did. This is probably them now. I’m sorry do you mind?” Valentina asked with an expression of regret on her face. 

“No not at all.” Juliana was left standing in the pool. So she decided to get out as well. She moved to the lounges with their towel and closed her eyes a bit. The tiredness of the day was starting to hit her. She was extremely content to lay on the lounger and relax while Valentina took her call. Today was turning out to be a good day....


End file.
